It’s a story of love and commitment. Not human to human, rather human to horse. I saw the process up close recently, and cannot seem to shake the thought of what I witnessed.

The horses I met through the non-profit called Red Bucket Equine Rescue, based in Huntington Beach, California all have a story. The majority of those stories are not ones you want to hear. They include abuse, neglect, starvation, even death.

But Susan Peirce, the woman behind Red Bucket tells me she is ready to fix the problem. In the last two years, the group which is 100-percent volunteer has saved 80 horses from slaughter, and has found 32 of them forever homes. Part of their mission is to restore trust in humankind and to find the horses safe, loving homes. They use positive reinforcement, compassion and consistency to bring these horses back to life.

But of course, every group needs our help. Red Bucket Rescue has been told they have to move from their current location. That means they have dozens of horses that need to be moved to a new location nearby that has land, but no shelter. It costs approximately 400 thousand dollars a year to keep the rescue running. The costs add up due to medical bills, shelter, food, and training. Red Bucket needs your help.

I typically write a blog in the early morning hours over a big cup of coffee, but today it’s the opposite. I couldn’t wait to share my day with you.

It started early with a 5am wakeup call to get ready to head to KTLA studios to do a story on a three legged dog named MONTY. This 2 year old is looking for a new home after being shot and left in the desert to die. Please spread his message of courage.

Later in the morning, I headed over to the La Brea Tar Pits for the Best Friends Pet Super Adoption. Monty and his foster met me there and we introduced Monty on stage. I also met a lot of cool people, and ran into lots of my favorite rescue groups and LA City Shelter friends. By the way, Monty wasn’t the only dog at the event with only 3 legs. I saw at least three others.

Once I left the Tar Pits, I headed to the valley to check out World Fest. I had been asked to speak there weeks ago, and thought it sounded like an event I would enjoy. It was. Everything from vege food, to eco-friendly products, rescue groups, live music and dancing. It sort of reminded me of my college days: long skirts, sandles, music, good food, and no worries. World Fest was oozing good vibes.

While I walked around with my dog Monkey, we saw some interesting things including a food booth selling BBQ, but not the kind you are thinking…Ha! As a Southern girl and vegetarian for the last 25 years, I thought, “Now that is interesting!!!” I didn’t stay long enough to taste it. Maybe next time.

Couldn't help but take a picture!

Joey

Then as I am leaving, who do I see but this little guy!!! Are you kidding me? He looks like my dog but a quarter the size. I had to stop. Joey, I am told was run over and didn’t get the proper care to help his hind legs. They are nearly paralyzed completely. In the dog pen, he sort of drags them behind him. I wanted to see him in his wheelchair. Once I did, I fell in love even more. You would too! Joey is a little sweetheart. He’s curious, gentle, and moves pretty dang fast on two legs. I’m not sure what I plan to do with his picture, but I felt compelled to share his story. There are others like Joey at a place called Dharma Rescue. They specialize in helping senior pets and animals with special needs. They seem like angels. Wanna help me find Joey a forever home? If so contact me at www.luparkerproject.org or Email me.

This week, I received a call from a group entitled Animal Defenders International. Within 48 hours I would be covering a story about alleged elephant abuse.

As an animal advocate myself, I feel like I am pretty educated on animal issues, but this story was an eye-opener for me. As I logged each frame of the video, I was pained. It was so difficult to watch and re-watch the images, but I knew I had to tell this story.

No matter the outcome, or the allegations, or the statements, elephants were hit. Baby elephants were hit for no apparent reason.

Animal Defenders International says the practices are not illegal, and will likely never stop unless there is a public outcry, or the media steps up to share the stories. For more information, and to get educated on the facts visit Animal Defenders International

I love moments that take my breath away, and lucky for me, one of those moments happened this week at an event in Los Angeles. It’s no secret that I often attend events here in the city that honor many extraordinary men and women. I have met Presidents, tons of celebrities, and other fascinating people. This time it was different.

While attending the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s National Tribute Dinner, which honored actor Tom Cruise, I was introduced to a man named Luis Alberto Urzua Iribarren. You may not know the name, but you surely know his heroic story. Urzua was one of 33 Chilean miners trapped inside a cave below the surface of the earth for 69 days back in the summer of 2010. When the mine ceiling collapsed, the miners were believed dead, but after 17 days a note that was brought up through a drilled hole notified rescuers that all of the miners were alive.

Chile's President Sebastian Pinera holds the letter from the trapped miners.

During the first 17 days, Urzua, the 54-year-old shift supervisor rationed food, giving one spoonful of tuna to each of the miners every 48 hours. Once the rescue effort began, Urzua was also the man who volunteered to stay behind until all his men were safe. The father of four would wait and watch as each of the men were pulled to higher ground. Imagine what each of these men must have gone through physically and mentally. Imagine how grateful they must be every single day to be alive.

I was only able to spend a few minutes with Urzua, who doesn’t speak English well, but because I have been studying Spanish, I was able to get a few nods and a smile from him. It was such a moment for me! I could tell this man, while tenacious, also has a kind and happy soul. Even though we couldn’t communicate verbally very well, I could feel his good energy just being next to him.

With Luis just after he made his speech

In October of 2010, I reported the rescue on television as it happened live. While in the newsroom, my colleagues and I watched with bated breath, as did millions around the world. One by one the men were pulled to safety. One by one, we sighed a bit of relief for them. I still consider those historic moments, and our coverage as one of my most memorable as a journalist.

Miners underground

Just after the rescue

So as many extraordinary people were being honored that night, including Tom Cruise, I found myself enthralled with Urzua’s message of strength and calmness. When he was introduced on stage, I couldn’t resist, and was the first out of my seat to stand. What an honor! During Urzua’s speech, he praised his fellow miners, and pointed to God as the 34th miner. Amazing!

I am grateful that I was able to meet Urzua, and will always use the experience to remind myself that no matter our hardships and struggles, we always deal better with calmness, strength, and knowledge that we WILL eventually see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I am sad, and here’s why. Just last week I learned about an alarming statistic. One out of every six children in the U.S. is at risk of hunger. (12.4 million children) I also learned that many students leave school on Friday, and are hungry until they return to school on Monday. There is simply not enough food at home.

Blessingsinabackpack.org is trying to change these numbers. The unique program is simple and designed to feed the elementary children who need help the most. Better test scores, positive behavior, increased attendance, and improved reading skills have all been linked to the success of the program.

Actor Omar Miller, from the CBS show CSI Miami, introduced me to Blessingsinabackpack.org. Fans also know Miller from the films Transformers and Spike Lee’s Miracle on St. Anna. I met up with Miller at a local elementary school in Los Angeles recently, and we both stepped in to help stuff backpacks for over one thousand students. It was an eye-opening experience.

At Normandie Avenue Elementary in Los Angeles, volunteers, parents, and teachers work for hours preparing the bags that are filled with non-perishable items like granola bars, soup, cereal, popcorn, and pudding. Every other Friday the students line up to get their bags. I saw the kids come in with their backpacks open. They were not bashful or ashamed. In fact, they were proud and excited. One teacher even told me she saw one child eating out of the bag soon after getting it, and she said to him “The food is for the weekend.” The child quickly responded, “But I’m hungry now.”

It’s simple. We cannot let our kids go hungry.

Miller agrees, and tells me it is exactly why he got involved. He has also started his own 501c3, The Omar Miller Foundation which takes left over food from television and movie sets, and provides it to needy families.

Blessingsinabackpack.org is currently feeding nearly forty thousand students in thirty-two states, but here in Los Angeles, the program is in only one school in the Los Angeles Unified School District. We can help change that because this program is easy to implement. Parents, teachers, community activists, and corporate supporters are finding they can implement the idea quickly. We just have to take that first step.

Children are our future, and as cliché as that may sound, they need our help and our hearts, and they need it fast. Spread the word.

FACTS:

$80 feeds one child every weekend for the entire school year.

Data shows that hungry children are sick more often and have lower academic achievement.

Over 62% of children in the U.S. Public School system are on the Free or Reduced Meal program.

Growing up is hard enough. Imagine having to worry about being shot at while walking the streets of your neighborhood. It was a reality for Kendrick Lamar. Now 23 years old, he’s sharing his story of keeping an upbeat attitude in an often-dark place.

Born and raised in Compton, California, a city where violence, drugs, and gang activity looms, Lamar knows what he must do to make it out. He’s found his voice on the microphone as a hip-hop artist, and people are beginning to listen.

Eminem’s manager, Paul Rosenberg, first took notice of Lamar late last year. Rosenberg tipped off rapper Dr. Dre, who gave Lamar a shout-out while on a Los Angeles radio station. Now things are moving fast.

This past January Lamar had his first sold out show at the Key Club in Los Angeles. Dr. Dre has included him on his much anticipated release Detox. Equally impressive, Lamar has landed on the cover of one of music’s most respected magazines, XXL. It’s a sign that the industry is watching and waiting.

Lamar tells me he began singing about his city, his struggles, and his survival at the age of 13. Now years later, he has nearly 300 songs, and must narrow it down to 12 for an album release. When asked which are his favorites, song titles like “The Hard Part 2,” “Cut You Off,” “Average Joe,” and “Faith” roll off his tongue. According to Lamar, all the songs have a message. Whether it’s about the ills of negativity, or the senseless loss of his uncle to prison, Lamar sings with a raw, honest, and sometimes angered voice. Many of his lyrics come from what he’s seen and experienced growing up in Compton.

His parents, who are still married, moved to Los Angeles from Chicago in the 1970’s. Lamar says his dad was always there for him, and admits the tight relationship likely saved his life, and gave him security to fall back on when he pushed the edges and lost focus.

While there has been a big drop in homicides in the city of Compton in the last couple of years, (some say due to better communication between police and residents), Lamar believes it is still not perfect; calling himself “a good kid in a mad city.”

I got a chance to spend the day with the young man who is, by the way, very charming. He and I walked the streets of Compton, visiting the Social Services building where he and his family collected welfare back in the day. We drove by his family’s first apartment, a building where he says he saw drug deals go down on a daily basis. We even stopped by his high school, a place he admits he “actually misses.” I also wanted to see Lamar in the studio. When we arrived, we found a small dark disheveled room in the back of a small house. It has been his place to record for years, and while it is not perfect by any means, sort of like the city of Compton, Kendrick Lamar hopes to help change that with his music.

When I created Lu Parker Project I didn’t really know what to expect. After yesterday, it became very clear to me that it was the right thing for me to do. I still sometimes get anxiety because I want to be able to do more and more with the organization, but I am starting to see how volunteers with LPP are taking charge and helping me.

For the last month or so, Beth Brown and Kim Rodgers have stepped up big time creating a Holiday Collection for homeless animals that will benefit Los Angeles Animal Shelters. Yesterday was the final day for people to donate. We gathered on Main Street at PEETS Coffee, and watched as person after person stopped to give us dog beds, cash, dog & cat food, dog bowls, blankets, towels, and leashes. It was a beautiful sight!!!!

We all understand that events like these don’t fix the homeless animal problem, but what they do is bring awareness to the problem. One day at a time, and one volunteer at a time, we can begin to make that change.

Yesterday, volunteers took carloads to the South Los Angeles Shelter, and they tell me they walked away with a FULL heart ready for the next project. What a beautiful thing!

Stay tuned for a Valentines Day special, coming soon. Plan to get roses for someone? You will want to hear what we will offer you!!!